Yoshi's

Yoshi's Review

The legendary Oakland club that has pulled in some of the world's best jazz musicians—Pat Martino, Branford Marsalis, Betty Carter, and Dizzy Gillespie, to name just a few—opened a San Francisco location in late 2007. The new club has terrific acoustics, a 9-foot Steinway grand piano (broken in by Chick Corea), and seating for 411; it's been hailed as "simply the best jazz club in the city." Yoshi's also serves Japanese food in an adjoining restaurant set in a soaring two-story space, decorated with blond wood and hanging paper lanterns (you can also order food at café tables in the club). And yes, the coupling of sushi and jazz is as elegant as it sounds. Sightlines are good from just about any vantage point, including the back balcony. Yoshi's is located in the Fillmore District, which was known as the "Harlem of the West" in its heyday during the 1940s and '50s. Be advised, the strip where the club is located is part of a new city redevelopment project—it's on a tough block in an even tougher neighborhood; so, take advantage of the valet parking.